This invention refers to footwear for ice skating, and, more particularly to footwear for ice hockey.
Ice skating footwear must conform structurally to the foot of the skater. It should provide the closest possible anatomical fit without tiring the foot in accordance with the sporting exercise in which the skater is engaged.
In particular, in the case of ice hockey, it is necessary for skating footwear to be structured and dimensioned to withstand the various forces and tortions that one encounters in that kind of sporting exercise. It is common for hockey to involve violent rotations and movements which can have a pronounced local effect. Footwear for ice hockey must be structured accordingly.
For that purpose, footwear for ice hockey generally includes, along with a hull, or body, to which a blade is attached, a legging at the neck of the hull. The legging is usually secured on opposite sides of the hull at about the ankle level of the skater. In accordance with known technology, the legging is connected to the hull by piercing the hull in the neck region, inserting a pivot and clinching the legging and hull to the pivot. To avoid having the extremities of the clinched pivots detract from the overall appearance of the legging, the extremities are usually molded as circular pieces and embedded in the legging.
The hinging of the legging to the neck portion of a shoe used for skating presents technical and economic problems. Besides requiring the use of a trained operator, known procedures limit the productive capacity of the manufacturing facility and increase the cost of producing individual items of footwear.
In addition, the hinge at the neck of the shoe constitutes an undesirable zone where significant pressure is applied during sporting exercises. As a result, there is the possibility of deforming, or even rupturing, the hinge, with consequent danger of damage to the footwear and injury to the skater.
Accordingly, it is an object of the invention to facilitate the realization of suitable leggings for skating, particularly for sportive skating, such as ice hockey. A related object is to alleviate the difficulties and disadvantages associated with known leggings used with footwear for ice skating.
Another object of the invention is to enhance the support provided by leggings used with skating footwear, particularly when used in sporting exercises such as hockey.
Still another object of the invention is to provide for the aesthetic attachment of leggings to skating footwear. A related object is to do so in an economic and advantageous fashion.
A further object of the invention is to provide auxiliary support for ice skating footwear, particularly when used in playing hockey. A related object is to provide for adjustability of the auxiliary support.